Scarlett Havens
by C. O. Rosette
Summary: Something has awakened in the small town of South Park. There is a strange feeling in the air. Everyone senses it, animals, plants, and people alike. The children are restless and to top it all off, they have their own personal problems to deal with. But their friends and families are in danger. Can the kids put aside their differences and work together to save the town?
1. Chapter 1

It's a cold morning. Wind is blowing, clouds are building up overhead, making it look like rain or snow could come any second. Most of his friends with sense are staying inside, away from the upcoming storm, but Kyle Broflovski inexplicably finds himself walking along farmer Denkins's cow pasture, watching the cows prepare for the big storm. He should probably go home where there's shelter, but he's too lost in his own thoughts right now. He just needs to be alone. He needs time to recover from the shock of the events that took place at school that day. Sure, it will definitely affect everyone that was there at the time, but Kyle knows most of the long term damage will remain with him. He walks along the edge of the pasture's wooden fence all the way until it ends. After that there's nothing but the road winding down hills piled with snow for a quarter mile until the SOUTH PARK sign. Kyle stops walking. He doesn't move forward, away from town, or backward, in the direction of home. He just stands there, gazing at the icy mountains in the distance. As snowflakes begin to fall, he stares up at the sky and remembers the failures he's gone through in order to get the love of his life but still keep all his friends...and his feelings for his super best friend. He looks up into the clouds as snow plummets down and it all unravels before him...

The setup: "Stan, wouldn't it be fun if we fixed Kyle up with Bebe? If Bebe and Kyle were a couple, then we can invite them over to your clubhouse for dinner and play parlor games and have meaningful conversations and sip cognac by the fireplace."

"What the hell have you gotten me into?"

"Don't be chicken, dude."

The dare: "Kiss Bebe on the lips!"

The breakup: "Kyle, can I talk to you?" the moment Bebe walked up to him and those words tumbled out of her mouth, Kyle knew it couldn't be good.

He replied with a simple, quiet, "Okay."

"Kyle, this is very difficult for me. I think we need time apart."

Kyle tried to look apathetic, or at least oblivious. He knew where this was going, "Huh?"

"I'm just feeling really trapped. I can't go on with this codependency," now, _that_ was unexpected. Kyle didn't think he had done anything to reveal his crush on her. Even when it was clear she liked him back, he held the secret in. He couldn't risk losing his friends because he liked this girl. It was more than that, though. He knew Stan had a girlfriend, and he'd been experiencing these feelings for a while, and he didn't believe it at the time, but he also seemed to be developing the same feelings for Stan that he currently had for Bebe. If he let either secrets go, his life would be over. For God's sake, he even pretended to be grossed out by Bebe kissing him in the clubhouse when it was actually kind of nice! Had that all been in vain? Did she somehow still call his bluff and detect his feelings for her?

Kyle couldn't be sure all this was true, so he kept up the act with another casual reply of, "Okay, that's fine."

But Bebe kept up the drama, even muffling Kyle's words with her mitten, "No, no. Don't speak. Just try and understand. It has to be this way." Was this girl determined to break his heart and and make him crack? If she wanted to break up with him, why did she want to know if he liked her so badly?

Kyle was persistent. "But I don't care," came his re buffer, but it was blocked by Bebe's mitten, still on his mouth. It was like she was _trying_ to convince him that he liked her!

As expected, Bebe ignored him, "Please. Just remember the good times we had. I'll never forget you. Never." And then she walked over to Clyde! "Okay, Clyde, we can go now," she said casually, as if nothing had happened between her and Kyle at all, as she passed Clyde by. Boy, she seemed to have forgotten Kyle the instant after she said she never would!

Clyde looked like he had been standing there for a while, waiting for Bebe to get done with her business so they could walk to school together. And that's exactly what they did. "Bitchin',"Clyde simply said and followed Bebe. But their voices now sounded very far away from Kyle even though they were only about five feet away. He watched them go, the world around him a big blur. They had no chance of being together anyway, but as he stood there, alone at the bus stop, Kyle felt like had just made a huge mistake.

And finally, what happened at school that day:

Class had just finished. The school day was over and Kyle was at his locker, preparing for whatever homework they have today when he hears that annoying, squeaky, preppy voice that he always tries to ignore, "Hey Kyle, can I please talk to you?"

"Why?" Kyle slammed the door of his locker and turned to face Bebe. This seemed to have caught the attention of many of the kids in the hall around them who were now all staring at Kyle like he was some sort of psycho, but Kyle didn't care. "It's not like you've been talking to me lately for the past eternity."

Bebe seemed to have noticed that they had suddenly become the center of attention and lowered her voice, "Kyle, please just listen. I just want to apologize."

"Apologize for what?" as Bebe lowered her voice, Kyle began to raised his. "Apologize for breaking up with me? For leaving me for that shit-haired sissy you call cute? Well it's a little too late for that, sweetheart!"

"Kyle, stop! Please!" Bebe pleaded. She seemed pretty close to crying now, her face reddening and her lip quivering. "You're making a scene!"

Kyle did notice that practically everyone in the school had crammed into that one little hall to see what all the drama was about. Stan was there. So were Cartman, Kenny, Butters, Craig, and all their other friends excluding Clyde. (It just goes to show what a horrible taste Bebe had in men.) Kyle didn't give a damn. He could feel the anger rising up inside of him, welling up and about to explode above the surface. The whole world could be watching for all he cared. Maybe then people will see what a cruel, shallow whore Bebe truly was. "Bebe, you left me more than a year ago. Did you just not notice all that painful time that's gone by since then? What about all those months of suffering and loneliness while you were getting free shoes from your clueless boyfriend? How could you possibly make up for all that?" Kyle annotated through gritted teeth.

Bebe was practically bawling by now, eyes red, and tears streaming down her face, "Kyle! I'm sorry p-please just listen to me! I-I'll think of something to make it up to you. I promise."

"Well you better think harder because apologizing after all this time isn't gonna cut it!"

The whole school seemed to go quiet after that and the earth stood perfectly still around that one location. Bebe had stopped her monotonous sobbing and now couldn't even look Kyle in the eyes. Instead, she focused her still-red eyes and wet face on the ground in front off her until after what seemed like a decade, she finally spoke, her voice small, hoarse, and barely audible, "At- first I thought I was done with you and could move on to Clyde. But then I saw you get your heart broken countless time over different people. Ms. Ellen, Rebecca, and then when I saw how Nicole left you for Token, I just, I realized that I was one of many people to let you down. I started it all and I just want you to know how horrible I feel about the whole thing. I'm a terrible person!" And with that, she continued sobbing uncontrollably.

For a split second, Kyle actually felt sorry for Bebe, especially because he's been in this position before, and his good boy side was instinctively telling him to reach out and comfort her. But that all quickly disappeared once he fully processed what she had mentioned before. When he spoke, his voice was hard, "I'm sorry, Bebe, but it's too late for any of that. You had you're chance many times and blew it during every single one of them. Even Nicole dumping me was months ago. Where were you then, huh? Nowhere to be found! If you won't even act like you care about me then I don't care about you. I have real friends that won't abandon me for over a year and then come literally crying back like you're doing right now."

Bebe looked up at Kyle for the first time in ages and appeared to be trying to move her mouth to form words between sobs but was trembling too hard to say anything, "I-" Before she could say anymore Clyde appeared beside her, putting an arm around her and pulling her shaking body closer to his. It's about damn time, Kyle thought.

"Hey," Clyde spoke sternly to Kyle in a pathetic attempt to sound threatening. "You messin' with my girl?"

"Fuck off, Clyde," Kyle said to Clyde's commiserable face. "Go take your stupid, slutty girlfriend to the janitor's closet or something. I have actual important things going on in my life right now." And with that, he turned around and walked off, shoving through the crowd of students as he went, not even bothering to look back at everyone's (including Clyde and Bebe's) shocked faces watching him go. He shouldn't've cared, he knew he shouldn't've, but that didn't help the fact that he still did and it _hurt_ a whole lot. And the fact that Bebe had just dumped him for Clyde! Clyde was his friend. So were Stan and Wendy. And maybe it was the idea that none of those three seemed to give a fuck that his heart was now broken and just seized whatever opportunities were open for them now that he and Bebe were broken up. Maybe it was that girls really _were_ gross and had cooties and all that stuff. He knew it would never work out anyway, he didn't really _want_ it to work out, but that still didn't make it any easier.

The memory slowly fades from Kyle's mind as his thoughts clear out to reveal the same snowy, blank slate that is the Colorado Rockies. The snow storm is getting worse, even starting to form a small blizzard now. Kyle knows he should head back to town for shelter before he freezes to death and his overprotective parents start worrying. He lets his head sag down, sighs, turns away from the outside of town, and starts walking back home where it's warm.


	2. Chapter 2

On that same night, in a completely different side of town, another young boy dwells in his sorrows, only this time, as he has done his whole life.

All Kenny McCormick has ever wanted since he was an infant was to lead a normal life...and to have more money so his family won't be poor...and to be cool wit da ladeez...and to have a bigger penis. Okay fine, he's just as greedy as anyone else in this stupid mind-fuck called South Park, but that doesn't change the fact that Kenny isn't like other kids his age, or anyone of any age for that matter. You see, Kenny has this... condition. Well, I don't know if you could quite call it a condition, he thinks it's more of a curse. Either way, it's not the reason he's standing on top of South Park Elementary, dressed as a gay version of Batman. Actually, maybe it is, but we'll get to that later.

Sometimes Kenny, or Mysterion, as he's called when he's dressed like a homosexual, just likes to go out at night and let it all go. He does this at night for two reasons: one, no one is out to hear or see him so he won't look retarded; and two, the night sky is very pretty and peaceful, a great stress reliever. It's a perfect time for one to wallow in their pain.

He stands among the barren and desolate rooftops overlooking the city, his large, purple hood with the obnoxious, green, question mark that springs above it, casts an ominous shadow over the mask that cloaks his hidden identity. Though up close he may look gay but seen from afar with his majestic, dark cape swirling in the nighttime wind, many bystanders may actually quote him as pretty epic-looking (if there _were _any bystanders).

Kenny's eyes have adjusted quite fittingly to the darkness of night. He now can see city hall from where he stands among the elementary school rooftop even without the help of the faint glow of the streetlights cast upon the boulevard below.

He begins to take his first few steps toward the edge of the building's roof. Once he reaches the edge, he peers down at the snow-covered ground below. Then he turns...and walks all the way to the other end of the building, turns around again, and runs full force right to the other end again, leaping off the edge like a gazelle and lands with a loud loud thump right on top of Shady Acres. Whoops. He'd better get away from there fast, before the inhabitants start acting up and get the caretakers to check to roof. He takes another running start and surges upward to a new building just as lights begin to turn on in the acres.

This time when Kenny lands on the next building, he makes sure to do it quietly, landing lightly on one foot instead of putting all his weight into it like a sumo wrestler or Iron Man or something. He's not that kind of superhero. When he lands for the second time and gets himself together, he realizes that he has now come to rest on what most consider to be the most useless building in town, the South Park center for seismic activity. Fortunately, no one is inside currently. It is closed for the night. They might as well be closed forever, seeing as they wouldn't be able to warn the town if the South Park volcano were about to erupt. In fact, Kenny can't even seem to remember when it was the last time he even heard from this place. Could it have been when the volcano erupted and killed him once again? Whatever. It's not like it matters anyway. He's almost to his destination.

The center for seismic activity lies amongst the southbound region of South Park, meaning if it were at the very edge-which it is- it would be aligned with the Rocky Mountain Range-which it also happens to be.- Kenny is trying to reach the eastern outermost region of South Park, which gives off the aura of being the most peaceful and quiet, not that there's any real difference when the whole town is quiet.

Kenny jumps off this building, this time landing on the actual ground, he can see the Denkins farm from where he stands in the middle of the road. He bounds swiftly toward the wooden fence lining the edge of the farm. He does this quite a lot at night whenever something is on his mind (which is to say pretty much every night).

He finally catches up the fence, sliding his arm along the side as he walks the way he always does. Almost completely swept up in his thoughts, he is taken by immediate surprise when he nearly trips on an unfamiliar dip in the snow. Before he can hit the ground and potentially die again, he instinctively grabs hold of the fence to save himself.

Kenny looks down to see what he tripped over. It's hard for him to make out at first, what is in the snow?

Kenny focuses his eyes to see what the figure in the snow is. Could it be...a...footprint? Someone else was here not too long ago! Kenny better leave before he gets caught.

Kenny turns his heel and runs back in the direction of his house, tears suddenly streaming down his face. He can't go anywhere without his potential discovery!  
He wouldn't even have to do this if it weren't for this stupid death-curse thing! How was he even cursed, anyway? He never really did find out, did he! He was _so close, _so _very near _to finding his secret, his destiny before that stupid, Mintberry Crunch douche stole it from him! It was supposed to be his life's meaning, but _no! He _can't have anything, can he? He has to live in a poor family with feuding parents and mysterious curse! He tried to tell his friends. He tried to tell all of them, Kyle, Stan, everyone! But they didn't listen because they never remembered! They couldn't remember whenever he died, over and over again and sometimes he just wants to end it all. Not that he doesn't want to live anymore, he just wants to stop dying.

He's so furious and caught up in the moment just running, eyes shut as tears still find a way to fight themselves out from under his eyelids, that he doesn't notice the oncoming headlights of a speeding car that he spontaneously crashes into a second later...and dies...


	3. Chapter 3

"There hasn't been much headway on whether or not the spontaneous surplus of accidents are actually a coincidence. Reporters claim there have been over twenty hospitalizations of different citizens of each gender, young and old, within the past week. 'For a small town like South Park, that's one, obese texan of a number,' one bystander announces," Randy Marsh sits at the breakfast table, reading the morning paper.

The family eats breakfast on Monday morning as usual, though the schedule has been slightly altered. Ever since the long series of accidents started happening in South Park, putting tens of people in the hospital every week, all of Stan's friends' families grew increasingly worried as the accidents drew on, afraid that these hospitalizations were picking the people of South Park off little by little, the Marsh family being no exception.

A few of Stan's friends have already gotten sick or injured enough to go to the hospital, sometimes in brutal disasters while others were as small as just a sudden collapse. Clyde is currently in the hospital from what started out as just a regular cold then went haywire. Leave it to the now single Roger Donovan to be just as stupid as everyone else and let a small cold be blown way out of proportion. Millie's also at Hell's Pass at the moment. Apparently she strained her hamstring possibly from the morning their class did one-hundred-fifty squats in P.E.. No one really knew until the fall in the hallway during the transition from recess to homeroom because her thigh was too sore to walk properly. Those two incidents seem completely different at first...but they keep on happening.

This bothers a lot of people especially Stan. Luckily, most of his close friends have managed to avoid these fates so far. Well, maybe except for Kenny. No one is ever sure what he's up to. He seemed fine yesterday, Stan thinks, chewing thoughtfully on his pancake. He doesn't know what he would do if anything ever happened to Kenny, Kyle, or Wendy. Obviously not Cartman, though. But Stan is still worried that the clock keeps ticking and it will be only a matter of time for his friends and family.

It doesn't take long for Stan to finish the rest of his pancakes. He can't be late for school on a Monday. He licks any remainder of maple syrup left off from the plate, wiping his mouth and placing the plate in the sink afterwards. He walks out of the kitchen and sits on the couch. He pulls out his iPhone. He figures he should text his friends just to make sure they're okay. Dude, what are you up to? He texts this to Kyle.

The reply doesn't take long to appear back. Not much. Getting ready for school. Why?

As soon as he receives Kyle's response, Stan texts back. I don't know I just have this weird feeling.

Kyle's new texts comes in immediate response. What do you mean by "weird feeling?"

"Just forget about it. Sorry I bothered you. See you in a couple minutes."

See you. Stan puts his phone back in his pocket. He's probably overreacting. His friends are fine. Of course they are.

After he brushed his teeth, he gets his things together and heads out the door for the bus stop. Should he text his other friends to see what's up with them? It's a bit of a walk to the bus stop and it's still fairly early. It will be little while before his friends arrive. Stan thinks about texting Kenny. He's not sure why, but the weird feeling he was about to tell Kyle about feels eerily to him like it has something to do with Kenny. It was probably just a dream, but he seems to have a vague memory of Kenny telling him he wasn't going to be at school today. Stan continues to trudge through the snow along the sidewalk past all the boring, bland houses that all look the same sans the one color that seems to encase each house as it's own. As the bus stop comes into view, Stan hopes to god it was just a dream.

Stan waits about three minutes before Kyle and Cartman show up. "You guys! Did you hear about all those people being put in the hospital all week?" Cartman blabs out.

"Yeah," Stan replies casually. "I was just thinking of Clyde and Millie this morning. My dad was reading the paper all about it."

"I still cannot believe that Clyde is actually in the hospital because of a cold," Kyle shakes his head in apathetic disappointment. "I swear, if his dad keeps this up, he's going to lose his son just as quickly as he lost his wife."

"Yeah. That's what I was thinking," Stan says.

"Clyde was a pussy anyway," Cartman points out.

"Don't talk about him like he's dead, fatass. It's still just a cold," Kyle snaps at Cartman. "I wonder how Kenny will feel when he hears Millie's in there too."

"What? Why?" Cartman asks, thoroughly confused.

"Yeah," Stan says for the third time. "Why would Kenny care about Millie?"

"Well," Kyle begins, pausing and looking gingerly at the ground as though this were a touchy subject. "I don't know if this is actually true or not, but I've been hearing rumors that Millie supposedly has this huge crush on Kenny or something."

"Whoa! We better warn Kenny," Cartman exclaims. "We don't want him getting cooties or something..."

"Millie has been sort of fawning over Kenny now that I think about it," Stan realizes thoughtfully. "But I never really noticed until now."

"I don't know if Kenny knows," Kyle adds, looking around. "Where is that guy, anyway?"

"Oh man, you guys! He's so poor, his parents probably ran out of bus money!"

"Actually, I think he had something to do."

"Wait a minute, he told you and not us?"

"Yeah, Stan. How do you know that?"

"Is there something you're not telling us?" Kyle inquires, eying him skeptically.

"What!? Of course not!" Stan desperately stutters. "You know what, never mind! Just forget about it!" He can feel sweat beginning to form on his forehead. At that moment, the bus pulls up. Stan hurriedly gets in without another word. Kyle and Cartman share a quick and confused glance. Stan sure is acting weird this morning.


End file.
